Longer red lights in Kaohsiung helping seniors cross streets

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/03/25
By: Wang Shu-fen and William Yen

Kaohsiung, March 25 (CNA) Kaohsiung’s traffic lights are staying red longer at over 180 intersections to allow its aging population more time to cross city streets, a Kaohsiung Bureau of Transportation (BOT) official said Sunday.

BOT Intelligent Transportation Center head Wang Chih-kang (王志綱) told CNA that in the past, the time allotted for pedestrians to cross a street was calculated at a speed of one meter per second but the formula has now been adjusted to 80 centimeters per second.

The initiative, which began at the end of last year and has been carried out at 188 intersections, gives people 50 seconds to get across a 40-meter road crossing, compared to 40 seconds in the past, Wang said.

He said the number of seconds it takes to cross streets is regularly reviewed and extended due to the needs of the growing elderly population, and this latest move should provide seniors with a more friendly environment for getting around the city on foot.
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